Field Mission 7: The Queen of Hearts, Part 1

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Once upon a time... NAVIGATION Click here for the RNG thread! The day is met the way all others begin: the sun rises from the eastern stretch of land facing the sea, as the citizens of Emberwharf awaken to a fish market brimming with life and splendor. The same sun is seen in Ok'talar, where its warchief watches, as is tradition for its leader to be meditating under the warmth of its warm embrace. The clans of the Highlands pick up where they left off just yesterday, squabbling over minor infractions of land, marriage, or deals that have fell through. And in the cold clutches of Orrenvia to the north, people are bundling up and preparing to visit the mines at the base of the Spine of the World. The general news throughout the Kingdom of Fanelia is that today is a day of celebration. It marks the 110th anniversary of the coronation of its ruler, the Queen of Hearts. While some people around the outskirts of the citadel proper consider this as a day of mourning, many are called forth to partake in festivities, dining, and the accompaniment of the finest musicians from the far-reaching town of Peppelfen. For the last 110 years, the Queen has kept order and, somehow, relative peace throughout the kingdom she rules. Although open defiance and protest is met with swift justice and sentencing, no one can overlook how crafty and careful she is. Her manipulations resonate throughout the annals of the history of Fanelia, present in every major brokered deal throughout its vast land mass and diverse population. Her benevolent guidance is felt by all... as is her tyranny. She is a monarch of paradoxes: obsessed with control, but only acting for the betterment of the realm's self-preservation. Every passionate declaration of "OFF WITH HIS HEAD!" had been necessary up to this point; who else can steer and guide this world into prosperity than she herself? The horizon in the far off distance swirls with its usual tumultuous temper. A dark cloud surrounds the continent where Fanelia is located, known to all as "The Expanse." Every year, the border closes a little bit more inward, narrowing the lands and threatening the civilizations that reside on the fringes. Its presence encroaches, and with it, a general looming sense of fear that one day only the capital city will be left standing, protected by a magical bubble of pure radiant light that allows only those permitted by decree to enter. But none of you can remember your life before this illusion took hold. As far as you're concerned, you've been here your entire life. You don't notice that this farce, this world created by the usage of a Grand Relic, has only existed for a year. One whole year has passed since magic was cut loose from Faerun's fabric, and no one is any wiser that it's been gone at all. You look down to your wrist, noticing the same three clouded, empty colored crystals that have always been there since the day you were born. Each one bears the shape of a heart, and it makes sense to you why Lucretia is known as... The Queen of Hearts. 1. THE COURT OF HEARTS A. ANOTHER MORNING, HOWEVER YOU SLICE IT Good morning! Where are you right now? Another day is creeping over the horizon, and your life as you know it is continuing down the path it always has. Wherever you are. However you're feeling. The crystals on your wrist, though you've managed to sort out at least one purpose for them by now, remain as dull and lifeless as they've always been. Maybe you've long since figured out that not everyone has them — and maybe today is the morning that you finally heed a call to figure out why. The harder you think about it, the more questions you seem to have. It's a wide world out there, and there are people you just might be dying to remember. Where will you go? Who will you run into? B. NETWORK Speaking of that one purpose you've stumbled upon: A series of messages that, if you choose to access them, dance across your mind as if they were your own thoughts. Over the years, the messages have ranged from confused — people on the other end wondering what this is, without really finding any answers — to just straight up sales pitches. One day, though, a message under the name of Avalon appears: Wandering fortune teller and adviser offering services. Have a burning question you want answered? Do you wish for a quick peek into the void, to light a match into the unknown? Giving out free samples now! Just message me ;) [ooc: If you'd like a randomized way for a memory to begin unraveling, feel free to hit up the RNG thread for a fortune! Note: A low roll doesn't necessarily mean a failure to nudge your character in the right direction, it will just dictate how cryptic and/or troll-y the fortune actually is. Or, feel free to come up with an unrelated fortune for a prompt.] C. AROUND THE CAPITAL One way or another, you may make your way to the capital city, the seat of the Court of Hearts. Whether you're here for answers, or whether you're here just to see the sights, here are a few ideas to get you started. ○ Chaotic croquet: Indeed, you will be discovering how the capital city plays the queen's favorite game. You and a fellow crystal-bearer/Reclaimer will near immediately be roped into a round and pitted against each other, with a rather stern reminder to follow the rules. If only the rules made sense! Each path to the next wicket is more treacherous than the last — you may find yourself quite literally navigating the ball over a bottomless pit, or bumping it up stairs that threaten to send the ball right back, careening toward your face. There is also the Stone Golem guarding the final wicket to contend with. It's a bit strange, actually. It's almost as if this match of the Queen of Hearts' imagining would prefer that the two of you worked together, rather than against each other. ○ We mentioned earlier that the castle, should you wander past the common areas, gets a little ... strange. It's labyrinthine in nature, with staircases, doors and hallways that lead to no where, or straight into the ceiling. The neat line of roses planted along the hallways begin to wither the farther you walk — almost as if nobody dared getting lost just to water some plants. And then, you wander into an empty room, that quite literally transforms before your eyes. It's the place you call home. Or ... is it? This is most certainly not your bedroom back in whatever corner of Fanelia you hail from. In fact, you don't think you've ever set foot in there before — it might be a bedroom with views into outer space itself. It might be a place from another world entirely, one that you definitely don't recognize. But as time passes, and as you stand there, your sense of longing grows stronger. You should probably get out of there, before the guards find you. ○ The Queen of Hearts, in a recent twist (not unusual for her), has a keen interest in the relationships her subjects have with one another, whether it's romantic or platonic. And she'd like to see to it that the people of Fanelia are able to find those important people in their lives. Enter: THE FANELIA FRIENDSHIP (OR SOMETHING MORE?) EXTRAVAGANZA Yeah, it's pretty much a dating show, for both the amusement of onlookers and for your benefit! Or friendship show, as it were. Sign up, answer a brief survey, and showrunners will pair you with a fellow crystal-bearer/Reclaimer that they think you may be compatible with. Let the dating begin! You may: - Slay a monster together - Take a nice long walk around the capital city together - Be given a series of embarrassing questions to ask each other - Cook a meal together - The list goes on Is the right person, or your new best friend, waiting for you in plain sight? Sign up and find out! D. EXPANDED WILDCARD As we mentioned in the OOC post, we highly encourage worldbuilding and creating your own scenarios to recover your character's lost memories! Outside of the capital city, the entire setting is yours to alter, and play in, as you see fit. Want to haunt the Enchanted Forest, or hunt wild boars? Want to follow your character's fairy tale story and have them work their way to leader of a clan, or of a settlement in Kingstown? Go for it! This is your story to write. If you have any questions, feel free to hit us up on the OOC post. blurb code by photosynthesis

Comments

[hxppythxughts]

[Like water. She can't help but fluster a little at the description, a few quick blinks as her cheeks flush pink. Does he know? It's no great secret if he does, really, but it's the rest of it she doesn't want to explain.

With her free hand, she spears a bit of fish on her fork and offers the whole thing out to Spike as she recovers with a bashful smile.] Well, Mister Spiegel, sounds like you've got some poetry in you too! That was a lovely description.

[menarefrom]

[Spike gives no further indication on whether he knows or not, though his mis-matched eyes get wider at the sight of the fish. He has no shame accepting the offering, carefuk with his kitty teeth, snapping it up quick. He licks a paw to wipe his face, and replies-]

I'm just full of surprises.

[lick lick lick, rub rub rub.]

There's poetry in most things, when you're in the mood to find it.

[hxppythxughts]

[A giggle bubbles out of her, and she pushes the plate across the table so that it sits halfway between them and Spike can help himself if he likes.] I'm always in that sort of mood!

[With her fork, she cuts off another morsel of fish, though this bite is for her.] I can't help it, though. The world is just so strange and beautiful!

[And sometimes scary. A lot of times scary. But she doesn't need to burden Spike with that.]

[menarefrom]

[Spike leans his elbow on the table and his little chin on his paw, his little kitty grin wide. People who find the vigor and wonder in life are the people he stays alive for.]

It is, isn't it? Sometimes I forget.

[Poetry like Sayori's does tend to remind him.]

[hxppythxughts]

[A soft sound of acknowledgment, and Sayori turns her eyes to the food pensively, though her smile remains with a certain weight attached to it.] I understand. Sometimes—

[Sometimes you take a bad deal from a sea witch for a man who doesn't love you back and everything sucks and you feel like you might die of heartbreak!]

—well, sometimes things can get awfully ugly, can't they?

But that's all the more reason not to forget!

cw: mentions of fictional death??? Idk better safe than sorry

[menarefrom]

[Sometimes you're a cat driven from his lover, and sometimes that lover dies in front of you, and you feel so sad you could die and death never comes.

But sometimes a kind soul finds you in your despair, waiting for the end, and reminds you there are still things to live for. Like humans that care for your wounds, or girls that give you fish.]

They sure can.

[But it's so easy for him to forget. It's so easy to think there's no sunshine left when things get ugly. Sayori's ability to keep seeing it is something he fears he lost long ago, and he almost envies it.]

You sure seem to know a thing or two about this.

[His eyes flick up to her inquisitively as he leans forward to shamelessly pluck another morsel of fish, leaving the question in the air. It's up to Sayori if she wants to elaborate; he's not pressing.]

[hxppythxughts]

[Ah, whoops. Did she say too much? Maybe. She becomes a little more aware of the ache in her legs as she shuffles her toes against the floor of the tavern while turning this response over in her head.

People tell sad stories. That's the whole reason she exists. But a story that only makes you sad...that's not what she wants to be at all.

Like water. She brushes a bit of her hair back towards the center of her forehead where a seashell marking hides and gives a reserved smile.] We've all seen ugly things. Sometimes I write about the ugly things I've seen. [Just like her Poet before her, but she's careful to control her heartache, lest she end up giving it miserable life somewhere else in someone who doesn't deserve it.] But I much prefer to make people smile.

[menarefrom]

[Spike seems satisfied, giving his paws a good clean while Sayori speaks.]

Well, that's a pretty admirable goal. You keep talking like that and you'll start to make a guy like me look bad.

[He says it all smooth and sweet, the smile apparent in his voice, his amusement obvious. It's not at her, but rather at his own expense, and at the same time he doesn't seem down about it.]

[hxppythxughts]

[She lifts her head again to meet his eyes with sympathy as she pops another bite of fish into her mouth.] Oh no! [And reaches out again, this time to give him an affectionate little scratch under the chin. Her voice lilts playfully.] Well, we wouldn't want that, Mister Spiegel, would we?

Is there any way I can make it up to you?

[menarefrom]

[The cat chuckles in his still-way-too-low-for-a-cat voice, eyes closed.]

You know what?

[He asks, looking at her through one open eye, the yellow-]

For giving such a good performance tonight, I'll go ahead and let it slide.

[hxppythxughts]

[Her shoulders slump with exaggerated relief and she laughs again, her grin showing all her sharp teeth.] Thank goodness! I don't know who else I'd share my fish with if I wronged you!

[Truly, nobody else understands her love of fish like a cat!]

[menarefrom]

Keep sharing your fish and you'll have a hard time wronging me.

[Assures Spike, helping himself to another piece.]

You're a strange one, little miss, but you have all the right priorities.

[hxppythxughts]

Strange, hm? [Well, that's true. She's aware of it in some ways more than others, and for that reason there's no offense in her voice.

She tilts her head as she takes a bite for herself, leaning towards him a bit in curiosity.] How so?

[Hopefully not in a bad way...]

[menarefrom]

Well, all humans are strange. That's their nature.

But over time they fade. Maybe not as fast as us cats, but the curiosity fades. The light.

[The brightness, the something beautiful inside each person. The thing he's sure he's lost.]

You still have it.

[hxppythxughts]

[Humans.

She averts her eyes—uncharacteristic for her, at least in this way, in awareness that she's being looked at.

Spike is a pretty good friend. He's very loyal to Mista. And he's always nice to her.] ...Well—

[A catch of hesitation. And then:] I'm not really a human, you see.

[So maybe that's why.]

[menarefrom]

Is that right?

[Maybe he's just humoring her, or maybe he didn't know, but either way he simply--- sliiides, laying on his stomach on the table, taking up space in a way only a cat could. His tail curls and uncurls behind him, his eyes almost sleepy. It's a showoffy display that in catspeak screams I mean no harm despite the way his voice plays.]

Well, maybe that's it.

[But maybe it isn't.]

[hxppythxughts]

[He doesn't seem all that surprised. Maybe he really did know. Like water.

But her shoulders relax a bit from the tension she didn't realize she was holding, and the corners of her mouth curl up tentatively as she reaches out to scratch behind one of his ears again.] I've lived among them for a little while now. But there's still so much I haven't seen! I can't help but be amazed at it all.

[menarefrom]

[Spike squints and lifts his chin. Hell yes, ear scratches. Despite the crispy purr he's putting off, he keeps speaking.]

That interesting, huh?

[He asks as though he doesn't agree, as if humans and their wonder and their kindness aren't what has kept him going thus far.]

I guess that's why they can't seem to keep you in one place.

[hxppythxughts]

[Whether she notes this disagreement or not, she doesn't say. She just keeps on scritching as a thoughtful noise and a head tilt follow.] I guess so!

[There's another pause, though this one is less tense than the last as she considers her words. How much she should say.] ...I'm used to wide open seas. So being contained within walls for too long makes me restless!

[Even though technically she's lived on land for much longer than she lived in the sea, it's not where she belongs.]

[menarefrom]

[Spike makes a weird half-growly noise-- not at all threatening, but the way he stretches his little limbs out and shakes his whiskers, it's obvious he's 'frustrated' restless, even if it's all drama.]

Hell, I know what you mean. It gets so cramped.

[And then he goes further, as if to encourage her with a similar thought of his own.]

I look at the sky sometimes and I wonder, is it freer up there? Tell me, is it freer in the ocean? Can you swim the way birds fly?

[Asks the cat that no longer remembers his name of Swimming Bird.]

[hxppythxughts]

[That's the funny thing about cats, isn't it? When they're around people it's because they choose to be.

Her smile takes on a shade it usually only shows in her poetry performances: rueful. She shifts her sore legs a bit, suddenly much more aware of them.] ...not anymore, I can't.

But yeah, it's— everything is connected by the water. You can go most anywhere. [Except, of course, onto land. Wherein lies the problem, or it did for Sayori.]